The Confluence

RALEIGH, NC – Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the Pittsburgh Penguins have claimed forward Zach Boychuk on waivers.

Boychuk, 23, appeared in Carolina’s season opener against the Florida Panthers and was a healthy extra for four games. The Airdrie, Alb., native has 32 points (16g, 16a) in 37 games for Charlotte this season, ranking first among Checkers in goals and points. Drafted by the Hurricanes in the first round (14th overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Boychuk has scored seven goals and earned 11 assists (18 points) in 73 career NHL games with the Hurricanes.

UPDATE: Penguins statement after the bump.

The Pittsburgh Penguins have claimed forward Zach Boychuk off of waivers from the Carolina Hurricanes, it was announced by executive vice president and general manager Ray Shero.

Boychuk, 23, has spent the majority of this season with the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League (AHL) – the top minor-league affiliate of the Hurricanes. Boychuk was leading the Checkers in scoring with 32 points (16G-16A) in 37 games played. He also appeared in one NHL game this season with Carolina.

Originally drafted by the Hurricanes in the first round (14th overall) of the 2008 NHL Draft, Boychuk has played parts of the past five seasons with the Hurricanes, tallying 18 points (7G-11A) in 73 career regular-season games. His best season at the NHL level came in 2009-10, when he notched nine points (3G-6A) in 31 games.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound Boychuk has spent most of the previous four seasons playing in the AHL for Charlotte and the Albany Rivers Rats. Boychuk’s best AHL season was ’10-11, when he established career highs offensively with 22 goals, 43 assists and 65 points in 60 games.

A native of Airdrie, Alberta, Boychuk played four seasons of junior hockey with the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the Western Hockey League (WHL) between 2005-09. Boychuk represented Team Canada in back-to-back World Junior Championships in 2008 and ’09, earning a gold medal both years. He served as an alternate captain for Canada in ’09.

hopefully they put the kennedy cooke sutter line back together… Sutter looks lost right now, and nothing close to resembling a viable option for third line center. That is not to suggest that everyone else does not suck as well right now, just that the third line was a source of hope at the begning of the season, and then DB broke it apart.

.(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) what it proves to me, Is Bylsma is CLUELESS ! TK is at his best on ther 3rd Line you put him anywhere else & he disappears has for Bylsma’s full time in Pgh.